Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC Purchases 143,804 Shares of Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS)

Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC increased its position in Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS) by 410.6% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 178,827 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 143,804 shares during the period. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC’s holdings in Zoetis were worth $33,698,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Darwin Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Zoetis during the third quarter valued at about $31,000. First Personal Financial Services purchased a new position in shares of Zoetis during the third quarter valued at about $33,000. Capital Performance Advisors LLP purchased a new position in shares of Zoetis during the third quarter valued at about $33,000. Quarry LP grew its position in shares of Zoetis by 273.2% during the second quarter. Quarry LP now owns 209 shares of the company’s stock valued at $36,000 after purchasing an additional 153 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Fortitude Family Office LLC grew its position in shares of Zoetis by 1,387.5% during the third quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 238 shares of the company’s stock valued at $46,000 after purchasing an additional 222 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 92.80% of the company’s stock.

Zoetis Stock Down 0.3 %

Shares of NYSE ZTS opened at $174.77 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.26, a current ratio of 3.69 and a quick ratio of 2.27. The company has a market cap of $78.85 billion, a P/E ratio of 32.85, a PEG ratio of 2.86 and a beta of 0.89. Zoetis Inc. has a 1 year low of $144.80 and a 1 year high of $201.92. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $182.43 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $180.93.

Zoetis (NYSE:ZTS) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, November 4th. The company reported $1.58 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.46 by $0.12. The business had revenue of $2.40 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.29 billion. Zoetis had a net margin of 26.55% and a return on equity of 51.98%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 11.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.36 earnings per share. Research analysts anticipate that Zoetis Inc. will post 5.9 earnings per share for the current year.

Zoetis Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 3rd. Shareholders of record on Thursday, October 31st were paid a $0.432 dividend. This represents a $1.73 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.99%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, October 31st. Zoetis’s payout ratio is currently 32.52%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

ZTS has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on Zoetis from $225.00 to $230.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, October 11th. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price objective on Zoetis from $200.00 to $210.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 18th. Leerink Partners started coverage on Zoetis in a research report on Monday. They set an “outperform” rating and a $215.00 price objective for the company. Piper Sandler increased their price target on shares of Zoetis from $195.00 to $210.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 14th. Finally, Leerink Partnrs raised shares of Zoetis to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Monday. Eleven analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $220.80.

Zoetis Company Profile

Zoetis Inc engages in the discovery, development, manufacture, and commercialization of animal health medicines, vaccines, and diagnostic products and services in the United States and internationally. The company commercializes products primarily across species, including livestock, such as cattle, swine, poultry, fish, and sheep and others; and companion animals comprising dogs, cats, and horses.